After the dim switches inside the AEM14 have been correct set and the AEM14 wired to engine, then the box can be calibrated to the number of pules per revolution, and other vairables that will smooth out a bouncing tachometer reading.

The DMK Box allows you to broadcast to the existing wifi system on your boat. This makes it easy to connect your mobile device, like your iPad or iPhone or PC, to your vessel's instruments.

A key differentiator between the DMK 11A and our competition is the ability to utilize Infrastructure Mode. While the DMK 11A can create its own wifi network for connecting mobile devices, Infrastructure Mode allows the DMK 11A to be configured to broadcast through your existing wifi network that allows internet access. And if you have older navigation instruments, then the DMK 11A will provide an easy installation.

It's a great solution if you've got a boat and want to monitor your engine data on existing equipment or the latest technology.

To purchase or learn more about our analog engine monitor, the DMK AEM14, please contact sales@dmkyacht.com.

See this detailed video to learn more about how to connect your boat's existing wifi network to the AEM14:

We've had a number of sailing blogs talk about how they're using the DMK Box on their boats. We're so happy to see sailors around the world using the DMK Box to make the analysis and display of their instrument data easy to access on their mobile devices. The posts below are great to read to understand the value customers are getting from the DMK Box in various boating scenarios using software such as iRegatta and Expedition.

The Log of Hagoth: Here's Brandon Ford talking about how he purchased a DMK 11A-GPS at the 2014 Seattle Boat Show. See his blog post here.

Abilyn Racing is using their DMK 11A-GPS to connect on-board data from Raymarine instruments with an iPad running iRegatta Pro and iNavX. Check out their post here.

American Tugs builds high quality expedition trawlers in La Conner WA. Steve details his use of the DMK 11A connected to Raymarine Seatalk instruments, sending data to his iPad. He's also using the DMK AEM14 Analog Engine Monitor to send data from his Cummins engine to his NMEA 2000 network. See Steve's post here.

Wolfgang Hass in Germany: Translated from German.
"Now the data can be provided from the SeaTalk network via the DMK box on WIFI. The new version of the Logbook (V3.5) can now use the data in addition to other programs, such as iRegatta, NKE or MID WIFI. This eliminates the manual entries."

We're happy to announce that DMK will be partnering with Abilyn Racing in their preparation and quest to race the 2015 Bermuda 1-2 where the 21-foot Abilyn will cover nearly 1300 miles of open ocean. Check out their blog post detailing their use of the DMK Box.

Abilyn Racing is using a DMK 11A-GPS to connect on-board data from Raymarine instruments with an iPad running iRegatta Pro and iNavX. This will allow us to pinpoint location and AIS targets. They'll also analyze sailing performance with greater precision than is available through their cockpit display.

The DMK Box is ideal for small race boats like Abilyn, which crave the same type of data as the big race boats, but cannot afford the full-on information centers delivering that data. With a full set of electronics, the DMK Box offers an elegantly simple solution that opens up boat data for precision analysis in a compact and affordable package.

We just had another great Seattle Boat Show booth experience in 2014. We met some great customers and partners. We sold a lot of boxes, and we're building momentum by introducing our new analog engine monitor & gateway which outputs NMEA 2000.

DMK AEM14 Analog Engine Monitor

The latest addition to the DMK product family is the DMK AEM14, a NMEA 2000 analog engine monitor and USB gateway in one device.

The AEM14 connects to your engine's wiring harnesses and converts analog signals to NMEA 2000. It works with analog sending units on your engine, and outputs digital data sentences of your live engine status.

The DMK AEM14 outputs to:
• any NMEA 2000 device via NMEA 2000 backbone or the included USB port
• your existing DMK Box (11A or 11A-GPS) for display on your mobile device or PC via supported apps and software, like iRegatta, iNavx and Expedition (see our home page for a listing of all apps)

It's a great solution if you've got a boat and want to monitor your engine data on existing equipment or the latest technology.

To purchase or learn more about our analog engine monitor, the DMK AEM14, please contact sales@dmkyacht.com. Our price is $450.

As a follow-on to the previous post on optimizing rig tension, last Sunday I went out to trial the boat's latest rigging setup against the Expedition performance curves before the upcoming Rum Run this weekend. Using our DMK 11A-GPS paired with Expedition software, I'm able to get great data. Finally the wind had come up after days of stagnant weather and it really turned into a great day for sailing.

I've been trying to improve the boat's performance with various adjustments, and this coming weekend I'll be racing in the Rum Run starting at Shilshole.

However, on my last pass around the lake my starboard side primary winch quit locking and the drum started spinning in reverse. I had already gotten the data I wanted from the sail so I tied off a Winch Hitch and headed for the dock.

My boat, built in 1965, is old by fiberglass standards. When I purchased her, she had bronze single speed winches that are now used as bookends on my fireplace mantle. I replaced them back in 2003 with a pair of used Barient 27 self tailing winches. I bought three of them used from the Scuttlebutt classifieds for $500. It was a lot of money to spend on my new live aboard when making $12/hr fixing boats but the deal was too good to pass up. This week however, I was extremely thankful to have all the spare parts I had been storing for 10 years available to get the boat going.

The performance data looked much improved over where the boat was in August. We'll see at the Rum Run if it ends with an improved result.

After sailing my boat for many years on the edge of control I decided this summer to start experimenting with increased rig tension in an attempt to increase my boat's pointing ability up-wind and to try to give her some increased control when sailing in more breeze. However the increased tension slowed the boat down a great deal in lighter air and was not helped by my hydraulic backstay adjuster packing it in after 40+ years of service. This weekend I finally got time to set the boat back up with similar rig tension as I had before I started.

When sailing and making changes this summer I also had a chance to set up Expedition sailing software with my DMK Box and onboard router and the NKE Display App. I used a Cal 40 polar chart in the software to generate performance numbers that I sailed with during my local beer can races. The numbers Expedition generated that I found useful were my Polar Speed percentage, Polar Pressure percentage, and optimum angle of sailing. Even though the polar was not of my boat these numbers gave me a baseline snapshot of my boat's performance. During sailing this year my polar speed and pressure where mostly in the 70-80% range when I dialed the boat in to the optimum angle upwind. These were the numbers I saw when my competition would grind me down and pass us all summer. After moving the forestay pin aft 5 inches to loosen the rig, (the forestay length is already maxed out) I test sailed the boat and found her polar speed and pressure numbers in the 90-105% range. It was a quick test sail and numbers always bounce around but I think less rig tension is the right direction to take my boat and now I have some numbers to back me up.

My setup with a cheap PC and Expedition was relatively inexpensive compared to using some instrument's performance processor. With my wireless network onboard I don't have to plug in any wires, I simply boot up my laptop and start the program and it all works from there. The next step will be to fix the backstay and see if that helps things even more.

We're continually moving forward to support more apps and developers. Here's info on our own updated app, plus new support pages to help you connect two more apps to your DMK 11A or 11A-GPS. MID WiFi is for iOS, while Coastal Explorer is for Windows.

DMK app

An update to our own DMK demo app is available now, version 1.1. What's new? You can now save configuration settings for multiple DMK Box locations / vessels.

From the iTunes description: MID WiFi shows the information from the onboard systems, the angle of heel and the predicted boat speed. The data (NMEA0183) is received over the WiFi and/or from the internal compass and GPS.

Coastal Explorer is a "sophisticated and full-featured, yet very easy to use navigation software package designed specifically for the pleasure boater." It provides powerful integration of charts and vessel instrument data as shown in the shots below.

Recently, our friends at Cruising NW have helped us create some quick but highly instructive videos on how to get the most out of your DMK Box, either the 11A or 11A-GPS. Whether you're considering the purchase of a DMK Box or you already own one and want to get the most out of it, these videos can help you.

Do you want Seatalk to NMEA 0183 conversion on your DMK Box? Swapping out the main board inside your DMK Box will enable this conversion using the apps iRegatta and iNavX if you have a Raymarine ST60 or ST50.

To start the process of a free swap, email sales@dkmyacht.com. You'll receive instructions on what to do next.

After you get your instructions in email, visit this video for further instructions on how to replace and exchange the main board in your DMK 11A or 11A-GPS.

Swifsure 2013 was a great success last weekend! We placed 3rd overall and won our division 3 race of Cape Flattery. The race started from Vancouver Island down through Puget Sound. We had a really great time and here are the photos to prove it!

Sunset of Victoria the first night we arrived.

Here's us racing it up!

Below was our technology setup from our successful Swiftsure Yacht Race last weekend. Tacking our way up the shore was hard, but our newly installed DMK Box, with attached devices showing us the depth gradient and other data, helped us navigate against adverse current and navigate with confidence. The setup definitely helped achieve our 1st place division finish. Definitely looking forward to next year!

Warning: This post has nothing to do with marine electronics. Instead, the subject relates to taking advantage of a repair opportunity to improve my general systems. This post describes an opportunity to move my water pump to a better location, even though the starter was the original issue.

As boaters, we all have those ordeals maintaining out boats. It takes work but the joys of sailing are so worth it!

A couple weeks ago my family and I decided to take the boat out for a spin on a sunny Sunday afternoon here in the Pacific Northwest. It was an early spring trip and not all my maintenance had been done to get her ready for cruising season.

The diesel started quickly and we motored out of the slip when we noticed an electrical burning smell and some smoke coming from the engine cavity.

I quickly shut the engine down and turned off my battery switches. A boat fire, even on Lake Union, can quickly turn into a serious deal. I suspected a corroded lug end might be the culprit. My boat is old and she has been on a budget for a long time. The engine is a pretty new Yanmar that rebuilt and installed myself in 2007 and I have lots of faith in the engine. The battery lugs I did in 2001 with less than stellar tools and I’ve had my reservations about their quality.

With the engine and batteries off, we still had a delightful sail on Lake Union and we did not have to break out any fire extinguishers. We tried the engine at the end of the sail but it would not start and made more smoke. I felt relieved that it was not a difficult sail back into the slip. However, something needed addressing before we could use the boat again.

A couple days later I got a chance to take a look and try to figure out what had failed. The main lug to my starter looked like it got a little hot but I quickly figured out that was because my starter had melted and dropped a ball of ooze on the stringer underneath it. I needed a new starter motor and of course it is located in a hard place to work on the boat. In fact I rarely inspect that side of the engine and it was obvious that the rear seal on my waterpump had been spraying some water on that side of the engine too. It was still late winter and I figured that it was time to address all these issues at once before spring.

The engine on Distance is a Yanmar 3JH series engine. It's a modern engine that was designed to go in modern sailboats with access to all sides. Also, a small footprint size to the engine is an important selling point since accommodation around the engine can be maximized. I think these two forces caused Yanmar to mount this engine’s raw water pump in between the starter motor and the alternator.

Removing the water pump to service it would mean that the forward/port engine mount must first be removed. I saw many reasons not to put the pump back in this location. Moving the water pump was worth the effort.

Yanmar 3JH in her spot on my boat Distance

View of the front waterpump access. The corrosion on the alternator was caused by a leaky rear seal on the pump.

Fun times standing on my head for rear access to the pump and starter motor.

From the outside the 3JH looks to have a couple of possibilities for relocation. The first option would be to mount the pump on the front side of the power take-off where it was originally mounted. Some issues: the alternator belt was in the way and there is a bearing race cast and machined into the engine that would have to be removed. I decided that was too big of a job.

Original water pump with rusty engine mount in the way

The inside of the power take-off once the pump was removed.

The second option would be to mount the pump to the PTO mounted to the front of the injection pump cam. The problem with this was there were no splines to attach the pump to on the front of the cam. I found an adapter for it online but I would have to remove the front cover of the engine to install it.

The third option was the easiest and the one I went with. This was to purchase a new waterpump and install it on the main crank of the engine. The original pump with the engine is a Johnson Pumps F5B-9. However, it is a special Yanmar version of this pump that costs around $600 to replace. Instead I purchase a Johnson Pumps F5B-9 that was intended to bolt to the crankshaft of a Chevy 350. It was about $175 to purchase. It has a bolt patter close enough to the bolt pattern on my Yanmar’s crank that I was able to bolt it up without modification. I needed to build a bracket to keep it from spinning. I built it out of aluminum that I heated and bent and drilled to bolt on the front of the engine. That was the most technical part of moving the pump.

The water pump is in and tested and all seems to work fine. Now all of the engine’s electrical pieces are isolated from a water pump leak, while the pump is now easily accessible for future service. I saved money on replacement if I had tried to replace the failing old pump. There are other headaches like I have to move a battery bank that was once located where the new pump went, but all in all I think this move is worth it and it will give me lots of peace of mind when cruising with my family this summer.

Finally done! The new raw water pump attached to the crank with its bracket to prevent it from spinning.

The other two options for pump placement are visible as well. They are the upper left where the aluminum plate is mounted with four bolts, and below the alternator on the right. The belt and other issues kept me from using that area.

We recently worked with Cruising Northwest to produce two short videos demonstrating what our DMK Box can do for boaters. In the first video, Kevin provides an overview of what the DMK Box does, while the second video covers the basics of how mobile apps work with the DMK 11A and 11A-GPS.

We've been having a warm winter this year in Seattle, so we've taken the opportunity to sail as often as weather permits. In addition to having some amazing sunsets this year, we've sailed in a few casual races here in Lake Union.

For example, we recently raced in the Goosebumps in Lake Union (above right). We passed a Hobie 33 and talked with the crew; it was a complete coincidence that the owner recently bought a DMK 11A at our local retailer Fisheries Supply!

We also raced around Lake Union recently with our new DMK spinnaker, flying it high and proud. Check it out!

DMK Yacht Instruments had another successful presence at the Seattle Boat Show in 2013. We received even more interest and attention this year compared to last year's boat show—from customers who purchased DMK Boxes at our booth, to industry reps in attendance at the show.

As you can see in the photo, we displayed a banner telling folks we offered "Wireless iPad Integration." With hundreds of millions of iPads and compatible iPhones sold worldwide, it was a clear message that attracted lots of people to our booth. It was great having conversations with customers and industry folks, exchanging ideas and hearing them talk about what they're looking to do on their boats.

The pitch we offered customers was simple: here's an easy way to display your vessel's instrument data on your mobile device without spending a lot of money. The DMK Box achieves this by working as a wifi bridge, uniting instrument communication protocols on your boat and broadcasting them to your iPad, iPhone and PC.

A retail partner here in Seattle, Fisheries Supply, was just down the concourse from us at the boat show—you can see a photo of their booth below. Of course, boat owners also buy the DMK Box here at our website and from Amazon.com, which helps us reach customers all around the globe. We build both our models right here in Seattle, but we love having customers everywhere!

In October we've had a number of productive customer visits here in Seattle. For instance, Kevin helped install a DMK Box on a restored Owens Cruiser where the owner felt that the box helped maintain a clean classic look to his dash. You can see the Owens Cruiser to the left.

Kevin also visited customers in Shilshole Bay Marina, helping to connect the DMK Box to a customer's Garmin unit and to another customer's Lowrance EP 60 fuel flow sensor.

In fact, fuel economy intelligence is an important scenario to highlight. The DMK Box can stream fuel data to your iOS device so you can track fuel economy in real time. In the photos below, Kevin successfully tested the Garmin GFS 10 fuel flow sensor with the nGauge iOS app using NMEA 2000 data via our DMK Box.

We wanted to share a post written by Ronnie Simpson describing his experience winning his division in the 2012 Singlehanded Transpac. He mentions using the DMK Box along with other equipment. From Simpson's post:

"On the topic of electronics, one thing that worked amazingly well was my DMK box from DMK Yacht Instruments. By wiring the box up to 12 volt power and the NMEA out port of my B&G computer, I had my GPS position and all of my instruments (Wind speed, angle, boat speed, depth, etc etc) wirelessly linked to my iPad. I had everything turned off most of the race, but by having all of my data linked to the iPad, it made it easy for me to navigate precisely, figure out perfect gybe angles and tactics, etc. Having the DMK box and full instruments turned a simple iPad into a full-on big boat style information center. This is a huge advantage on a small ocean racing boat."

According to Quantum Sails, Simpson worked with wounded-veteran non-profit Hope for the Warriors to raise money and awareness for teaching wounded veterans how to sail.

Coming off the coattails of DMK's successful Seattle Boat Show debut, here's a profile of our company written by Deborah Bach of Three Sheets NW. It's a great summary of how DMK Yacht Instruments got its start.

In addition to describing how Doug, Matt and Kevin started the company, Bach offers a concise explanation of what the DMK Box does and how it can benefit boaters. From the article:

"Any boater with a smartphone or iPad has probably wondered when someone was going to figure out a way to easily display data from onboard instruments without shelling out big bucks for a complex navigation system.

Now a start-up Seattle company, DMK Yacht Instruments, has developed a way to do just that.

And if the company succeeds with its first product — a small and relatively inexpensive box that can broadcast real-time instrument data to your favorite mobile device — it may help to usher in a revolution in how we get and use information aboard our boats.

The system connects to NMEA 0183, NMEA 2000 and Raymarine’s SeaTalk communications protocols, allowing boaters with a mix of systems onboard to unite them through the box."